From botch-free punctures on the operating table to dramatically more energy-efficient lighting and well-watered kitchen gardens, the inventions of three $30,000-prize-winning students aim to make life better for people around the world.

The road to success in innovation, according to the recipients of the annual Lemelson-MIT Student Prize, begins with a profound respect for the power of learning.

“I refuse to stop being curious,” Nikolai Begg, a graduate student in mechanical engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and winner of the school’s check, told NBC News. “Every single experience you have and every single time you can ask a question “¦ you learn something new.”